Aerofoil for aeroships, control of inclination



March 10, 1931. s. HlTT 1,795,721

AERQFOIL FOR AEROSHIPS', CONTROL OF INCLIIUKTIO meg Nov. 27. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 WWNESSEs: 6241a 5 W March 10, 1931. s. E. HlT T 1,795,721

AEROFOIL FOR AEROSHIPS, CONTROL OF INCLINATION Filed Nov. 27. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwwn io'c March 9 s. E. HITT 1,795,721

AEROFOIL FOR AERosHIPs, CONTROL OF) INCLINATION Filed Nov. 27. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet s "\TNESSES'.

@m a @M-Q/ M m/ (1% March 10, 1931.

NYTNESSES X/a Z/ 830606101) 5. E. HlTT 1,795,721

AEROFOIL FOR AEROSHIPS, CONTROL OF INCLINATION Filed novfzv. 1929 4 Sheets$heet ,4

gwwmtoz JbW/ZW Patented Mar. 10, 1931 PATENT caries SAMUEL E. HITT, or nLYn-m, oH-I'o AEROFOIL ron AERosHr'rs, common or INGLINATION A'PIEIiCatiOnx filed November 27, 1929; SerialNo; 410,?295.

This invention relates to aerofoilsor wings for aeroships such asar'e' particularly adaptable to my' aero-hydro-glideman' aeroship which is intended to rise only'afewfeet above the water, illustrated and described in; my applications air and water craft, filed March 26, 1928, Serial No; 264,634, aerofoils for aero-ship's filed February11,1'929, Serial No; 339,231, air valves for aerofoils filed February 20, 1-929, Serial. No. 3%,538, propeller turret for propulsion and steering, of aeroships, August 12, 1929, Serial No; 385,238, and others. 7

As shown in these applications my aeroshi'p' as plannedi is a thousand feet long, and on account, of its great length must necessarily travel upon an even keel when gliding on the surface of the water and with very little in clination from the horizontal when flying clear of the water.

Sea andland planes are now made for altitude flying and are capable-of an angle .of incidence of lodegrees on the rise and 45 degrees when diving and there isno very good 5 reason for a construction that permits a change in the angle of incidence of inclina tion, without changing that of the fuselage at the same time,-because the plane is brought to an even keel before landing and because rigid construction is much safer for altitude flying.

But with my aeroship, the conditions are different. My aeroship is-very long and heavy and has a lifting power to raise'the aeroship clear of the water only when travelingat high speed and at maximum efiiciency. 7

When starting out, at low speed, it is desirab leto increase the lift so that the aero-' ship will rise more andmore out of the water as the speedincreases. This can be done'by varying the angle'o-f inclination of the wings and as my aeroship travels upon an even keel ornearly so, I have pivoted the masts that carry thewings, so that the masts can be inclined from theverticaL-forward or aft, as desired. The inclination of the masts is effected by suitable gearing and power, electricalpreferred.

on clearing the harbor and reaching open water, if the aeroship is not up to speed and the sea is rough, it becomes desirable to give the aeroship a slight inclination to raise the bow out ofthe water so that the hulls will ride upon the waves instead of diving into them. lnt'his-case, the pilot wishesto have a greater lift forward. To meet this" condition 1' have divided the nine masts on each hull into groups-of threewith separate controls. To raise the bow, theaft or ster'ngiroup of planes are given'a normal inclination, i. e., for maximum efiiciency for therelative air, current velocity at that" time, the forward group of wings aregiven an inclination to effect a maximum lift for'that relative air'current' and the central group of wingsaregiv'en an inclination midway between that of the'forward and aft groups.

An object of my invention is to provide means for changing theinclination of the wings oraerofoil as may be necessary for change of wind or speed of'aeroship or both, so as to always fly or glide with maximum efficiency. 7

An object of my invention is to pivot, the masts which carry the wings so that the angle of inclination of; the wings can be changed when gliding or flying free.

An object of my invention is to provide every mast with worm wheel gearing so that the masts are locked in position automatically.

An: object of my invention is to effect the change of wing inclination and inclinationof the masts from the vertical, by electrical power,.with suitable gear reduction from the motor to the worm gearing.

An object of my invention is to have all of the mast motors under centralized control.

Another object of my invention is to have the mast control mechanism divided into groups so that greater lift can be obtained forward if desired; v

Another obg'ect of my inventionisto provide the masts and shafting with frictionless bearings to reduce the power required to a minimum.

Another object ofmy invention is to provide such bearings with contact surfaces for safety in case the balls or rollers fail.

Another object of my invention is toprovide hollow masts and trunnions so that wiring of the masts for air valve control can be concealed.

An object of my invention is to provide controllers for the several motors, located in the pilot house, for centralized control.

An object of my invention is to provide a switchboard in the pilot house for mast motor controls.

\Vith the above and other objects in view, the invention further includes the following novel features and details of construction, to be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the appended claims. a

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan of my aeroship and diagram of electrical control.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of my aeroship showing pivoted masts and motor drive.

Fig. 3 is a part longitudinal sectional elevation, showing a group of three wings and their pivotal mast mounting,

Fig. 4 is an end view of one of the hull units.

Fig. 5 is a half elevation and half section of the mast trunnion bearing.

' Referring to the drawings in detail where in like characters of reference denote corresponding parts, 1 is the port hull. and 2 the starboard hull, 3 is the forward bridge and 4 the aft bridge connecting hulls 1 and 2, 5 is the hull framework with the upper deck level 6 and the lower deck level 7. lVing units 8 are carried by masts 9 which are pivotally mounted at 10 at the upper deck level 6. In like manner, wings 11 are carried by masts 12 pivotally mounted at 10 at the upper deck level 6. The wings 8 are carried higher than wings 11 for the purpose of reaching new air and also for clearance reasons that more wings can be mounted on the hull.

The lower ends of masts 9 and 12 carry sector worm gears 14 engaged by worms 15 upon the shaft 16 running in bearings 17 and driven by electric motor 18. The speed of the motor is further reduced by motor gears 19 and 20. The motor is automatically thrown out after the worm has made one turn so that the wings are always set at a definite angle, easily indicated by an instrument on the switchboard in the pilot house 100. Stops will be provided for the sector to prevent over travel and a slip gear for the motor in case the stop is reached while the motor is still running. are the propeller turret units.

In Fig. 5 pivotal mounting of the mast 9 at the main deck level 6 is shown in more dotail, where is one of the trunnions of mast 9 supported by roller bearings carri d by the base 31 and cap 32, the base 31 secured to floor beams 33 and 34 at the upper deck level 6 by the bolts 35 and 36. The cap 32 is secured to the base 31 by bolts 32a. The trunnions 30 are supported by four frictionless bearings, the two inner bearings to carry most of the load and the two outer bearings to take the tilting load due to side thrusts of the wings when the resultant air current is not parallel to the hull, i. e., when there is a wind at an angle to the course of the acroship.

The inner bearing consists of an inner race 40, a solid ring on the trunnion 30, an outer race 41, a solid ring carried by the base 31 and cap 32, and balls 42. A small clearance between the races and 41 at 43 and 46 allow the balls 42 to take the load. In case the balls 42 fail the surfaces 43 and 44 of the inner race 40 come in contact with the surfaces 45 and 46 of the outer race 41, and the bearing will continue to function without serious mishap. The outer races can be adjusted from the outside by set screws 47.

The outer bearing is similar, consisting of an inner race 50, outer race 51, balls 52 and adjusting screws The inner race 40 is held in place by the collar 58 and the inner race is held in place by collar 59.

Conduit tubing ('30 passes through the trunnion 30, and up through the hollow shaft 9 and carries the circuit for the wing valve motor. The opening in the trunnion 30 is closed by the half plates 61 secured by the tap bolts 62. The bearing is protected from the weather by the shield in halves, fastened together by bolts 71 and secured to the mast 9 by the collar 72 and shoulder 73 on the mast 9.

In Fig. 1 the mast motors 181 to 18- 3 for the several groups of masts are all wired to controllers 81 to 86 in the pilot house 109 by circuits 91 to 96 shown. The controllers are mounted on a switchboard in the pilot house and connected to a generator in the power house, not shown.

The operation of my invention is as fol lows:

On leaving port, and getting under way at slow speed the hulls are drawing their full. depth of water and the head resistance of the water is great, and the aeroship picks up speed slowly.

To pick up speed as fast as possible the pilot sets all planes for maximum lift and as the speed increases the aft wings are brought to a less inclination so that the aeroship is given enough inclination for the bow to ride up on the waves, and as the speed further increases the acrofoils are given still less inclination for maximum efficiency corresponding to the increased. velocity of the resultant air current until finally full speed is reached and the wings are leveled oil t minimum inclination and the aeroship clears the water at maximum speed and maximum efficiency.

It is apparent that the embodiment of the invention which I have described in detail possesses all the features of advantage enumerated as desirable in the statement of the invention and the above description. It is also evident that numerous changes in the details of construction and in the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as hereinafter claimed Without sacrificing any of its advantages.

\Vhat I claim is:

1. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by gearing mounted on the said framework at the said lower deck level for the purpose of varying the inclination of the said wings, substantially as specified.

2. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous areoplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by gearing mounted on the said framework at the said lower deck level for the purpose of varying the inclination of the said wings, to give inclination to the aeroship, substantially as specified.

3. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by gearing mounted on the said framework at the said lower deck level and electric motor drives to tilt the said mast to control the inclination of the wings in groups, substantially as specified.

4. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said lower deck level, the said worm gearing operated by power under centralized electrical control, substantially as specified.

5. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and hori.

zontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said lower deck level, the said worm gearing operated by electric motors and circuit wirlng b tw en; the said eleetrie meters ed hep b h se f cen ral zed eeat ol, sub tant a y as speeifiedr a n an aerosh p. Similar emit uee m efhulls reen qree'd ve ti lly. ndzontally by structural framework, having pper and lower desk l ve s, numerous ae planes c rried by meet pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said lower deck level, the said worm gearing operated by electric motors, and electric controllers in the pilot house for each of the said motors for centralized control, substantially as specified.

7. In an aeroship or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework, having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said. lower deck level, the said worm gearing operated by electric motors, and a switchboard in the pilot house for'the circuit switches, motor controllers and instruments, to indicate the inclination of the several groups of wings, substantially as specified.

8. In an aeroship. or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the said masts carrying the said aeroplanes at two or more levels, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled b worm gearing at the said lower deck leve the said Worm gearing operated by electric motors under centralized control, substanti ally as specified.

9. In an aeroplane or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said lower deck level, the said masts provided with trunnions or stud shafts rotatively mounted in frictionless bearings secured to the said framework at the said upper deck level, substantially as specified.

10. In an aeroplane or similar craft, one or more hulls reenforced vertically and horizontally by structural framework having upper and lower deck levels, numerous aeroplanes carried by masts pivotally mounted on the said framework at the said upper deck level, the lower ends of the said masts held and controlled by worm gearing at the said lower deck level, the said pivotal mounting 

